A Tribute to a Special Lady

Nativity Window at Sacred Heart Parish.

I hope all Catholics everywhere had a wonderful Feast of the Assumption of Mary on August 15^th. In this Feast we celebrated the taking up of Mary, body and soul into heaven. This is what we hope for ourselves.

The Apostle John is given a vision in the book of Revelation of the “ark of the covenant”. The Ark had not been seen since the time of Jeremiah and the Captivity of the Jews to Babylon. Then John starts talking about a woman “clothed with the sun, crowned with twelve stars and the moon under her feet.” Wait a minute! I thought John was going to talk about the Ark of the Covenant? Let us look at this from another angle.

In ancient Israel no one was allowed to touch the Ark of the Covenant. So what does this have to do with the mother of our Lord? Can darkness produce light? Can a sinful human being produce the sinless Redeemer? Since Mary is the mother of Jesus, imagine what it was like for Joseph.

Seeing Mary in a New Light

In 1943 there was a movie called “The Song of Bernadette”. It told the story of a young girl who saw the Blessed Virgin in Southern France. When everyone thinks that Bernadette is saying all these things to get attention, one character is overwhelmed with what he sees in her. He proclaims, “One not even touch a being like that.”

The same awe must have filled the minds of the Apostles at Pentecost. Mary was there with them. She knew Jesus better than anyone in the room. The Apostles were in the same place that Joseph was 33 years previously. This woman was very special. How would you have approached the mother of Jesus?

Ave Maria!

Praise be Jesus Christ!

A Prayer Challenge

Do you pray every day? With a busy schedule it is difficult to spend time with God. As Catholics we have a rich collection of prayers. The Rosary is one of them. The Rosary focuses our attention on the gospel. Now if I challenged you to pray the Rosary every day for an entire month, could you do it? How about a year?

I would like to invite all Catholics and our brothers and sisters in Christ to a one-year prayer challenge. This challenge consists of praying every day for an entire year beginning today (August 5^th, 2012). Pray at home, at church and preferably somewhere with minimal distractions. Pray reverently, thoughtfully and consistently.

Remember, the point of all this is spending time with God. Treasure this special time and thank God for all He has done of you. If you find prayer difficult or don’t have time, start small. Be consistent. Be patient. It will be time well spent.

Happy praying everybody! Keep in touch!

Day 1

Ave Maria!

Praise be Jesus Christ!